Work to replace Sumner pipes starting soon

New pipes will be laid underneath the Peacocks Gallop section of the Main Road in Sumner over the next few months as work continues to replace infrastructure damaged by the earthquakes.

The replacement of the quake-damaged water and wastewater pipes that run along that section of Main Rd has not been able to proceed before now because of the high rock fall risk.

However, now the geotechnical hazards have been addressed and the shipping containers that were protecting the road have been removed, work can begin on replacing the damaged pipes beneath the roadway.

A new wastewater pipe will be installed under the centre of the road. A second water supply pipe will also be added to increase the resilience of the network.

The new water pipe will carry 4.3 million litres of water a day – enough to nearly fill an Olympic-size swimming pool twice over - and service homes in Clifton Bay, Richmond Hill, Sumner, Scarborough and Taylors Mistake.

Christchurch City Council will also be installing a crash barrier at Shag Rock corner along Peacocks Gallop and resurfacing the road.

“Unfortunately these works are going to cause some disruptions for motorists heading into and out of Sumner. We are very aware that Main Rd is the only traffic access in and out of Sumner so we will be taking all measures to ensure that disruption is kept to a minimum," says Council Head of Three Waters and Waste, John Mackie.

“During the day we will be maintaining two lanes of traffic along Main Rd to minimise congestion and delays. Some work will need to be carried out at night. When that work is happening traffic may be reduced to one lane for periods," Mr Mackie says.

The contractor Fulton Hogan will be taking steps to keep noise to a minimum when working at night.

“We realise Sumner residents have had to put up with a lot of disruptions and road works since the earthquakes but it is important we get the damaged pipes replaced. We would ask residents to bear with us while we get this work done," Mr Mackie says.